Absorption of CO2 laser radiation by carbonyl fluoride

Abstract

The absorption characteristics of COF2 both internal and external to the optical resonator of a CO2 laser were investigated over pressure ranges 1–26 Torr. Injection of small amounts of COF2 into the flow of an operating transfer chemical laser resulted in significant reductions in laser power. The absorption coefficient for COF2 was obtained from experiments using a CO2 laser with a line selection capability. For pure COF2 in the pressure range 1–10 Torr, the strongest absorption was on the P(24) line yielding an absorption coefficient of — 0.005 cm−1 Torr−1. When the COF2 was diluted with N2, the absorption was found to decrease as the operating laser line moves away from the COF2 absorption band centered at 965 cm−1 (10.36 μm).